adjective / verb

corrupt

kuh-RUHPT/kəˈrʌpt/

Damaged in integrity so that it is unreliable.

The corrupt official secretly accepts an envelope beneath the desk.

A dishonest official secretly accepts a thick plain envelope beneath a desk from a visitor, furtive eye contact, no banknote text or insignia.

Etymology

The 'break' root, with a possibly intensive prefix, gives the sense 'spoil' or 'destroy.' Applied figuratively to character and integrity, this becomes moral debasement, including dishonesty and bribery.

In context

Prof. Sam Vaknin58:02

Now, we should distinguish between two types of corruption. There is operational functional corruption. That's a kind of corruption that allows the corrupt politician to maintain networks of patronage and clientele.

Psychology of Fraud and Corruption (Criminology Intro in CIAPS, Cambridge, UK)

More examples

A power failure can corrupt files during a save.
The translator compares older copies to restore the corrupt passage.
Bribes corrupt the people entrusted with enforcing the rules.

Forms

corrupt · corrupts · corrupted · corrupting · more corrupt · most corrupt

corruption noun — Dishonesty or damage that compromises integrity.

corruptible adjective — Capable of being made dishonest or unreliable.

Similar words

dishonest: Emphasizes lying or cheating, not damage to data or text.
damaged: Covers harm generally, without necessarily implying lost integrity or reliability.
debased: Emphasizes lowered quality or moral worth rather than lost reliability.